 When
the French first arrived in Hanoi it was the City of Lakes. But many were
filled in accommodate the French looking city that was to be built in Hanoi.
Around the pulsating heart of the old city, the French laid out their new
town with comfortable villas, residences, offices and numerous public buildings.
Visitors could not avoid the unmistakable European flavour of the shops.
The wide boulevards, lined with tamarind trees but that was the French approach
to their colonies. Prince Henri d'Orleans visiting the colony at the end
of 19th century commented. "…….we have a knack for clearing a native town,
and constructing by the side of it something at once clean and elegant,
utilising the smallest details so as to make the whole effect pleasing to
the eye.We have partially reconstructed two of the most beautiful towns
in the Far Easy, Hanoi and Saigon." I believe that it is important for anyone
visiting Indochina to understand how the region they are visiting has evolved
to what it is today. Indochina is worth a visit if only for the finest French
Bread and Coffee in the Far East. The continuing legacy of Colonial France,
for which I for one am very grateful . |
